Defined social development in adolescence

Social Development During AdolescenceNovember 4, 2014

The time between childhood and adulthood is known as adolescence. Adolescence begins around age eleven or twelve and lasts until the late teens or early twenties. Adolescence is a time of physical, cognitive and psychosocial growth. Parental influences decrease during this time and peer influences increase. Adolescence is a time when an individual searches for their own identity. This paper will explore adolescent social development and discuss the changes an individual experiences during this period of their life.

Adolescence begins around age eleven or twelve and continues until the late teens or early twenties. Adolescence begins with the physical changes that lead to sexual maturity. Children are reaching adolescence earlier, both physically and socially than in the past. Puberty is occurring at an earlier age too. Adolescence is a time of change, exploration, worries and problems. It is a time when individuals move from childhood to adulthood. (Coon, 1997).

G. Stanley Hall was one of the first psychologists to describe the adolescent period. Hall believed the tension that occurred between biological maturity and social independence generated a time of "storm and stress". Adolescents experience many moods and are prone to mood swings (Myers, 2004). The cognitive development that takes place during this time gives adolescents the ability to reason. These advancing reasoning skills allow adolescents to ponder several options and possibilities to situations and experiences. They are able to think more logically than when they were younger. They are also able to think hypothetically. Adolescents are able to think abstractly.

Adolescents' cognitive development gives them a new degree of social awareness and the capacity to make moral judgments. Early in adolescence, an individual becomes capable of thinking more intensely about their own thoughts and of other people's thoughts. This, in turn, makes them think about what other people think and feel about them. As cognitive abilities increase and mature, adolescents think about what their feelings and ideas of an ideal world are and often criticize their parents, schools, society and their own inadequacies (Myers, 2004).

At the beginning of adolescence, ages 11-14, an individual's reasoning is focused on themselves. They feel as if their experiences in life are unique. Many times they feel as if their parents and other adults do not understand them or know how they feel. It is a slow process, but eventually most adolescents attain the intellectual peak that Piaget termed formal operations. Adolescents become capable of abstract thinking and logic. They use this abstract reasoning to think about good and evil, truth and justice and human nature. This new ability also allows them to see the inconsistencies in other people's reasoning. This newfound ability can lead to debates and arguments with their parents (Coon, 1997).

Source: voices.yahoo.com

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Your school should have a library

by Promunch

Where you can look up journal articles which deal with love, adolescent development and its effect on social norms, etc.
You would want to limit your search to psychology and sociology related journals. If you are still struggling a librarian would be able to help you.
That is going to be much more reliable than anything you can find from google or asking on a global forum (with the added benefit that you can actually use it as a scholarly source, something you cannot do with a forum post since it is not reliable).

The development of social anxiety in adolescents with autism spectrum disorders.: An article from: Focus on Autism and Other Developmental DisabilitiesBook (Thomson Gale)

The effects of peers on the academic and creative talent development of a gifted adolescent male.: An article from: Journal of Secondary Gifted EducationBook (Prufrock Press)

Male adolescents' view on sexual activity as basis for the development of aids-prevention programmes.: An article from: EducationBook (Project Innovation (Alabama))

Heavy prenatal alcohol linked to behavioral ills: in adolescents, skills for academic achievement and social interaction were found to be greatly ... An article from: Clinical Psychiatry NewsBook (Thomson Gale)

Feeling board.: An article from: SIECUS DevelopmentsBook (Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S., Inc.)

Major motor skills Children aged 5–7 years old can skip, and have strong ball skills. Fine motor skills Children can colour...

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